Paya Lebar was one of Singapore’s earliest commercial hubs, but it now stands neglected and underdeveloped, with the Singapore Post Centre building its sole marker of modernisation.

Within the next 15 years, however, all that will change.

The neighbourhood around the Paya Lebar MRT station is slated for a major makeover as part of the Government’s recently unveiled draft masterplan.

It will be transformed into Paya Lebar Central, a suburban commercial node nestled between the city centre and the bustling Tampines commercial hub.

About 12ha of land around Sims Avenue and Geylang Road will be put up for development, yielding some 5.4 million sq ft of commercial space.

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BANGKOK - OIL prices dropped below US$124 a barrel yesterday in Asia, as demand concerns deepened and after United States Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke indicated that more US interest rate cuts were unlikely.

Mr Bernanke’s comments suggesting inflation was too much of a concern to contemplate more rate hikes sent the US dollar higher and raised questions about oil’s ability to reach new highs in the short term.

He signalled that the Fed was inclined to leave rates where they were for now, but some analysts said he might be taking a step towards an eventual rise in rates later this year or early next year.

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A CONSTRUCTION firm based in China’s north-east with a string of commercial and civic projects under its belt is listing in Singapore.

Sino Construction aims to raise net proceeds of $35.6 million with its initial public offering (IPO) of 152 million shares priced at 39 cents apiece.

The company’s customers are mainly property and infrastructure developers and government-related bodies.

The offer, launched yesterday, comprises 6.4 million public-offer shares and 146 million placement shares.

Of the proceeds, $17.5 million has been earmarked for a concrete mixing base, $10 million will be used to purchase construction equipment, and the rest will serve as general working capital.

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BERLIN - THE United States is already in a recession, and it will be longer and deeper than what many people expect, United States investment guru Warren Buffett said in an interview published in German magazine Der Spiegel last Saturday.

He said the US was ‘already in a recession…perhaps not in the sense that economists would define it’ with two consecutive quarters of negative growth.

‘But the people are already feeling the effects,’ said Mr Buffett, the world’s richest man.

‘It will be deeper and last longer than many think.’

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By Alvin Foo, Markets Correspondent

THE recent retreat of Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index is drawing traders into fresh positions for its contracts.

Last Friday, the index plunged 329.05 points to 24,714.07 - down a total of 904.79 points, or 3.53 per cent, for the week.

However, a Societe Generale (SG) warrants report said: ‘Investors’ sentiment has improved, as negative news coming from the United States has abated and some recent news has been fairly positive.’

‘The index has risen by about 4,200 points from its low in mid-March,’ it noted.

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MARKET players are expecting activity on the local bourse to follow the dreary tone set in the past few weeks.

The lack of conviction in the market stems from the troubling inflationary pressures fuelled by record oil prices and Wall Street’s fall last Friday. There is not likely to be much uplifting news coming in either.

‘You know the saying: Sell in May and go away? Every month this year seems to be a May. It’s that bad,’ said a remisier.

‘It’s very stressful for us as well. Once you buy, you’re stuck. There’s not much to be made. We don’t want to see clients lose money.’

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Bank letting small investors get a big piece of the action, say sources

By Grace Ng, Finance Correspondent

NOT LEFT OUT: OCBC’s preference share offer is likely to come with a lower dividend rate than the DBS securities. However, sources say retail investors will be able to take up OCBC’s offer. DBS’ recent $1.5 billion preference share issue was open only to institutional investors. — BT FILE PHOTO

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New homes, rising vacancy rates, unsold condos and fewer rental deals cited as reasons

By Fiona Chan, Property Reporter

ST GRAPHICS ILLUSTRATION: ISTOCKPHOTO THE slowdown in the Singapore housing market has prompted two banks to predict a dramatic plunge in home values in the next two years.In two starkly bearish reports, Barclays Capital and Credit Suisse have forecast drops of up to 40 per cent in home rents and prices, as demand and supply dynamics move in favour of buyers.

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ZURICH - THE end of the global credit crisis is getting closer and the United States real estate market should recover in the second half of the year, Deutsche Bank chief executive (CEO) Josef Ackermann said in a newspaper interview.

‘I think that we are getting closer to the end of the financial crisis,’ he told the Swiss Sunday newspaper SonntagsBlick. ‘It is not fully over yet, but the signs from the US are encouraging.’

He said the pragmatic approach being taken in the US to resolve the crisis should start to pay off soon.

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RESIDENTS in Punggol will have a new shopping mall and more fellow residents within the next three years.

The new town, which already has 16,700 flats, has another 2,100 being built now.

The Housing Board also recently launched 1,700 flats and will launch another 4,000 by year’s end, said National Development Minister Mah Bow Tan last Saturday at the launch of a two-day exhibition on the progress in Punggol.

He added that, with more residents calling Punggol home, it would become feasible to build more commercial and public facilities.

One being planned is a shopping mall about the size of Junction 8 in Bishan.

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